The Hound of Atlas
by shaniic
Summary: After an incident that caused the White Fang's drastic change, Jaune Arc became Ironwood's Protege. And the general made him the commander of the Hound Special Forces. A unit that specializes against the White Fang and defense against Grimm. Beta read by Maxaro


**Beta reader: Maxaro**

 **I would like to thank my Beta reader for the help he's given and for being patient with me and my fuck-ups. Seriously, this guy deserves a medal for being patient especially with a piece of shit like me.**

 **p.s. please read my author's note in the end**

* * *

It was supposed to be just a simple liberation mission; take out the Atlesian security and SDC employees and free the oppressed Faunus working in the mines.

So then why was Blake Belladonna running for her dear life in one of the forests of Atlas?

That's because the mine was a trap. Instead of your run of the mill Atlesian forces, the ones there were Atlas specialists that were waiting for them. And that wasn't even the worst part; the 'oppressed Faunus' that they found were soldiers as well. Specifically of the Hound special force—a small military unit that specialized in Grimm incursions and White Fang attacks led by the white dog of Ironwood.

Although their leader wasn't present, the one chasing Blake at the moment was the second-in-command and her combat abilities were not to be underestimated. Blake wore her white fang mask to remain incognito towards her enemies while hoping her brothers and sisters of the Fang were having an easier time than her.

After Blake passed through a dense foliage of trees and bushes she was forced to come to a stop as her path had ended. Before her laid a cliff that fell into a ravine deep below. Annoyed, she clicked her tongue and began to turn back, but right then a female figure appeared from where she'd come from.

With long purple hair tied in a single ponytail and adorned in a business suit and black formal pants that hid a well-proportioned body was Violet Evers, the Hound Units' second-in-command. She wasted no time and unsheathed the long odachi that was strapped behind her back, advancing forward menacingly.

Steadying herself, Blake armed herself as well, prepared to make a move at a moment's notice.

"Well, isn't this a surprise. I'll be going against Taurus' protege," Violet chuckled, her sweet silky voice oozing with confidence.

The faunus kept quiet.

"Oh? What's the matter, cat got your tongue?" Violet continued to tease as she let out a bit of her tongue from her lips and winked at her.

Blake grit her teeth and let Gambol Shroud shift into its kusarigama form and threw it towards her opponent. Violet simply smiled coolly and dodged the hurled weapon before rushing forward, kicking the ground with every step as Blake fired Gambol Shroud, its recoil making it return towards her while also aiming the kusarigama at Violet's exposed back.

For a moment, it looked like the attack would hit home, but the Atlesian officer moved her head at the very last second, Gambol Shroud whizzing harmlessly by her head into the waiting hands of Blake.

As soon as the faunus had her weapon in her grasp once again, she changed it into its katana form and rushed at Violet.

Despite her speed, Violet had time to make a horizontal slash before Blake could reach her and the she was forced to block the attack with Gambol Shroud's cleaver whilst jumping back and leaving a clone. Violet was not about to give her any reprove however, as she leaped into the air and, upon reaching peak heights, shot back towards the ground with such velocity that Blake was barely able to dodge her guillotine-like heel. The attack was powerful enough to leave a large crater in the ground where the faunus had once stood, and even though she'd managed to avoid the worst of it, a spray of jagged rocks still assaulted her body.

From within the smoke of dust that was left in the wake of Violet's kick, a palm shot out for Blake's face, and this time she wasn't fast enough to dodge. She flinched backwards, only for her breath to be torn from her lungs as her abdomen was pummeled by a series of rapid strikes from the officer. Every impact felt like a hammer was hitting her and not a human and it was by sheer instinct alone that she managed to block the next fist with her cleaver, only for a leg to hit her unprotected head.

Blake's world spun as she crumbled to the ground, her ears ringing from the kick, and she was unable to muster up any resistance as Violet roughly pinned her against the forest floor and locked her hands with a pair of cuffs.

"Hopefully you'll behave like the rest of your comrades," Violet sighed as pulled Blake up by her hands before bringing one of her hands up to her earpiece. "I've caught another Fang member. Get the Bullhead ready."

With her status reported, the officer went and picked up her weapon, sheathing it, before giving Blake a shove towards the forest they'd both come from. They'd just started walking when suddenly a pair of figures emerged out of the dense foliage. One was wearing a ragged cloak that hid the entirety of their face and body, revealing only their feet, while the other, a man with horns jutting out his forehead and brown eyes staring fiercely at the woman behind Violet, had the lower half of his face covered by a Mistralian oni mask, the rest of his body garbed in black yukata with his left sleeve hanging by his, revealing a plethora of scars he'd presumably gained from many years of fighting.

"Edmund Kid..." Violet spat with hatred towards the horned man, pushing Blake behind her, a hand going for the handle of her odachi.

"Violet Evers," the goat faunus in question replied as he pulled out a glaive from his robes, the black steel of its blade sounding as if it was crying out for its next hunt.

Neither combatant said anything more as they stared each other down, Violet's eyes shifting between Edmund and his cloaked accomplice, making sure she was standing where her body blocked the access to her prisoner from both of them.

In a flash of sparks, odachi met glaive as both Violet and Edmund charged at one another. They held the blade-lock for a moment before, with a grunt, Edmund managed to push back the Hound officer just enough for him to move her attention from the captured faunus behind her.

Gritting his teeth, Edmund unleashed a barrage of slashes and thrusts against Violet, and though they were seemingly all blocked or deflected, the continuous onslaught of attacks slowly but surely began to drive the officer away from her prisoner.

"Go! Take her now!" Edmund yelled as soon as enough ground had been created between them, the cloaked figure nodding in confirmation before they rushed towards Blake.

They wasted no time breaking her cuffs in a manner that Blake didn't have time to catch, her eyes locked on the fearsome duel taking place just a couple of meters away, but her attention was brought back to the figure when she felt her hands become freed.

"Follow me," they said with a distinctly male voice, making sure their face remained well hidden from view as they ran off into the forest.

Blake spared another glance at the pair in combat before running after the cloaked _man_.

As they ran, it didn't take long before Blake's sensitive ears caught the sounds of other footsteps shuffling in a hurry around them.

"Dammit!" she heard the cloaked figure curse.

"This way!" he shouted as he turned a corner sharply, Blake following closely behind him.

Their new path lead them to a rope bridge hanging over dangerous rapids, neither stopping until they neared the middle and they both noticed that Hound forces and an Atlesian specialist had appeared from somewhere, waiting for them at the other end of the bridge.

Again, the cloaked man cursed. "Why did it have to be _him_ of all people," he asked no one in particular, his eyes hardening when he turned back to see the route they had come from was also blocked with Violet herself staring them down.

"I am not gonna' let these Atlesian dogs take me," Blake growled.

"And I wouldn't want you to be taken," the cloaked man agreed.

Turning to each other, their eyes met, his sapphire staring at her citrine. Even behind his cloak, Blake could feel the smile he gave her before he gestured to the rapids below them.

"You thinking what I'm thinking?"

Blake only gave a silent nod in reply.

The man offered his hand and she took it reluctantly. Even though she knew what was about to happen, she still felt surprised when her _companion_ stepped onto the ropes holding the bridge together and jumped, pulling her down with him.

The last thing that went through Blake's mind before she met the cold, churning waters was a strange feeling of warmth surrounding her, along with a warm, yellow glow.

Along with the splash.

* * *

Blake Belladonna woke up from her slumber only to be met with an unfamiliar ceiling and a rather comfortable bed, a far offshoot from the usual tents and sleeping bag that she and the other Fangs were normally supplied with. Confused, she immediately sat up and looked around the wooden room to get a sense of what was going on.

The first thing her gaze landed on was Gambol Shroud laying on a windowsill with the window itself letting her view the lush, sunlit sea of green trees outside whatever place she'd found herself in. Her investigation was cut short as her ears twitch at the sound of creaking wood and footsteps from outside the door on the other side of the room, and she quickly got out of the bed and grabbed her weapon, unsheathing the dark gray katana and aiming it towards the door.

The doorknob clicked and turned and as soon as the door opened Blake's heightened tension was suddenly washed away when she saw that instead of some faceless captor, it was her mother, Kali Belladonna, who entered the room.

"Mom...?" Blake asked confusedly as she lowered her arms to the side.

As soon as the realization that her daughter was awake set in, Kali rushed to Blake and pulled her into a tight hug, tears threatening to spill from her eyes. "Oh, Blake. I'm so glad you're okay," she sniffled.

Instinctively, Blake let her weapons fall to the floor before she hesitantly started to return the embrace, but before long she was returning her mother's affection fully.

"I... I missed you too, mom," she mumbled as she buried her face deeper into her mother's neck.

"Do you know what happened to you?" She heard Kali ask as they continued their embrace.

"I... kinda' do. I was- wait, what are _you_ doing _here_?!"

As far as Blake knew, she and the White Fang detail she'd been assigned to were in Atlas and her mother was supposed to be in Menagerie. What exactly was going on here?

"Jaune Arc brought us here. He said he'd be bringing you here. Imagine my surprise to see you two wet and being carried by hi-"

"Jaune Arc!? As in _that_ Arc?"

Kali raised an eyebrow. "Yes."

"Son of Jonathan and Erica Arc?" Blake questioned further.

Her mother nodded.

Blake took a deep breath. "Brother to seven sisters?"

"Honestly, I don't know how Jonathan was able to do that," Kali said in a scolding tone.

She gulped. "Jaune Arc; leader of the Hounds Special Forces?"

"Yep," her mother answered with a smile.

As if on cue, the door to the room opened and revealed a blonde youth with a goofy smile standing on the other side of it

"Someone call my name?" Jaune Arc himself asked as he walked in and revealed the childish Pumpkin Pete hoodie he was wearing.

A deep voice followed. "You know, I don't know how to feel about you barging into my daughter's room without knocking." Blake's father, Ghira Belladonna, entered after the youth.

Looking up at the tall faunus, the blonde gave him an apologetic smile. "Woops, sorry. Lived with seven sisters so it's kind of a force of habit at this point."

Though the air in the room had seemed friendly, any trace of that was suddenly ripped away when, much to both Kali and Ghira's surprise, Blake fetched Gambol Shroud from the floor and pointed her weapon at the newcomer's neck in one fluid motion, advancing towards him menacingly until she was close enough to push her blade against his throat.

"Just what the hell is going on here?" Blake growled, eyes locked Jaune's.

"Well-!" Jaune tried to speak up, but he was cut off by Blake pressing her weapon further into his neck, just a single movement away from having his throat slit open.

"I didn't ask you," Blake hissed before turning to her mother.

"Okay, I get you. You meant your paren-" This time it he didn't even need to be reminded of the blade at his throat, Jaune bit his tongue simply from Blake turning her head back and glaring at him. "I'll be quiet now."

"Blake, put your weapon down. _Now,_ " her father said with a serious tone.

"But he's the enemy!" Blake protested immediately. "He's been hunting down Faunus with his hound unit!"

"Yes, but he's also been treating every faunus they caught well," Kali interjected.

"What do you mean?"

At his daughter's confusion, Ghira let out a heavy sigh before answering. "Every faunus his unit apprehends either joins his cause or is sent back home after they've interrogated them."

"See!? Interrogation-"

" _Without torture_. He compensates them for their cooperation."

As soon as her father's words had registered with her, Blake suddenly had an epiphany. "Wait, is that how his unit knows about White Fang operations!?" She'd always wondered why the Atlas branch had always had such a hard time operating and moving around. What she'd just been told seemingly solved that mystery; they'd been compromised, apparently, but that seemed impossible to her. If they had been having information leaks, then surely the Atlas branch would've been wiped out. So that begged the question _why had they been allowed to continue?_

"Well, that's not the only way how," Jaune added only for Blake to roughly push him into the wall, Gambol Shroud still ready and able to end his life in the blink of an eye.

"What's your game here?" she seethed.

"Look, as much as I like the position we're in right now, would you mind giving me some breathing space?" Jaune chuckled awkwardly, gesturing down to how they were basically standing chest to chest against the wall.

Almost instantly, Blake let him go, taking a step backward as an even harsher scowl crossed her features.

"Pervert."

This got another chuckle out of the blonde before he smirked in a way that thoroughly got on Blake's nerves. "Hey, that's like a pot calling the kettle black. I'm not the one who reads smut here."

Eyes widening, Blake sputtered indignantly as a flush began rising to her cheeks "How do you even know that!?"

"Eh, it's pretty much public secret no. 1 in the White Fang. I wouldn't be surprised if there were less people that _didn't_ know about it than there are that do," he shrugged simply.

On the other side of the room, Ghira rolled his eyes while Kali merely laughed at the teens' 'antics'.

Blake blush only darkened as she faced her parents. "Okay, just what is with you two and this Arc?" she asked.

"His father and I-... we're close friends," Ghira answer while intentionally looking away from Jaune.

"And?" Blake raised an eyebrow clear that her interest was piqued. This was new information regarding her father, a rarity for her, and while she wasn't openly going admit it, her curiosity always had a tendency of getting the better of her.

Her father sighed. "Do you mind if I tell her the story?" It was his turn to ask, addressing the Jaune rather than Blake.

"By all means, go ahead. I'll just go get some coffee and eat in the kitchen," the blonde shrugged again before walking towards the door. As he went passed Ghira, however, he stopped briefly and gave the man a sad smile. "I've already forgiven the Fang, Ghira," he said somberly before sighing and leaving the room.

"What happened?" Blake asked as soon as Jaune had closed the door behind him.

Sharing a glance with her husband, Kali sat down on the bed and urged Blake to do the same, something she thankfully did without any more of the drama the previous minutes had contained so much of, Ghira leaning on the on the doorframe to the room.

"Do you remember the Faunus Peace Summit?" Ghira asked as soon as Blake had settled down, getting a nod from her in return.

If she closed her eyes, Blake could recall the event in rather vivid detail in fact.

Years ago, when the White Fang had yet to be known as the terrorist group that it was viewed as today, their protests for equality had been heard by a Noble family in Atlas. That family was the ones known as the Arcs, with Jonathan Arc, the family head, having actively spoken out towards the Remnant council. He'd used all his power and connections to have laws against Faunus discrimination made across Remnant and for Menagerie to become an official kingdom with its own CCT tower. Much in part to him, the populace's voices had been heard and with faunus representatives from all the kingdoms, including Menagerie, people and faunus had gathered on the island of Vytal where the Faunus Peace Summit had been held. Sadly, before the laws had been able to be officially implemented, the event had been sabotaged by a series of catastrophic explosions that had ended up killing both humans and faunus. The body count had been devastating and it was to this day up the event with the most casualties in the history of Remnant.

"I remember," Blake said finally. She hadn't been able to attend because at that time she'd fallen into a fever and had had to stay at home with her mother, but she remembered the anger she'd felt when she had thought her father was gone.

Ghira closed his eyes. "Jonathan saved me. He protected me and carried the rubble on his back. He told me to save the kids—his daughters and his wife. I did. And before I could help him he..."

Blake could tell that just thinking back to the event took a lot out of her father, his voice heavy with sorrow and regret, but even though he'd trailed off, she could see in his eyes that he intended to finishing telling the story.

"He was crushed by the rubble, right in front of me. That day the White Fang changed, started blaming humans for everything, saying it was them who had planted the bombs, while the humans did the same towards the faunus. Even to this day, no one knows whose side actually caused it, only that it was the spark that ignited the fires of open conflict between humans and faunus." He let out a bitter chuckle. "Ironically, Jonathan's efforts to make humans and faunus equal brought the opposite effect. I did my best to honor his wishes by trying to calm the White Fang's anger, but it was too strong for me to do so instead I stepped down from my leadership. I couldn't bear to lead the Fang towards the path my friend worked hard for to avoid." He covered his eyes with his hand to hide the tears that flowed down his cheeks.

Kali stood up and gave her husband a comforting hug with Blake following closely behind.

For as long as she could remember, Blake had resented her father because she'd believed him stepping down from the role of the White Fang's was an act of cowardice, but now she realized things were a lot more complicated than she'd thought.

Ghira had done what he could to honor his friend's last wishes, even if that made him look meek in the eyes of many. In the end, he hadn't been able to change anything, but he'd still tried, and that wasn't something that anyone could shame him for. Perhaps for the life of her father she should honor his savior's wishes as well...

/-/

Jaune had always loved Pumpkin Pete's Marshmallow cereal. It was the sweet, delicious, and all around perfect way of starting the day, and to make things better they gave out prizes for sending boxtops. In fact, he was wearing one of said prices right at this moment. He'd had to save a lot of cereal boxes before he'd been able to redeem them, but in the end he was very happy with the comfy sweater he'd been rewarded with for his efforts.

' _Ah, this is bliss,'_ he thought to himself as he scooped up another spoonful of ceral.

"Wow, never think I'd see anyone look ecstatic about _that._ " Jaune was broken out of his reverie at the sound of Blake's thankfully less hostile voice, one of her hands gesturing lazily to the bowl sitting in front of him.

"What can I say; I have an acquired taste for the finer things in life," he retorted with a smirk.

"Were you the guy wearing the cloak?" Blake asked, her voice turning serious, to which Jaune only smiled and nodded. "I see. Thank you for that," she continued.

That's when it clicked and Blake's eyes suddenly went wide. "Was this all part of your plan!?"

"You mean the fake information, and fake ambush?"

Her eyes narrowed. "Is it!?"

"Well, it was until Atlesian specialists showed up," Jaune explained dryly.

"Aren't they soldiers like you?"

At that the blonde had to laugh sarcastically before taking another spoonful of cereal, munching and swallowing before actually replying.

"Hey, the Atlesian specialists hate my unit as much as the Fang."

"Wait, why?"

"Well, it _might_ have something to do with the whole 'everyone in the unit is a faunus' thing and the fact that I'm Ironwood's protege?"

"Ironwood trained you?"

"Yeah, and it's pretty much how I became legible to be the head of the Hound Special Forces. The council and Specialists weren't particularly happy though."

Blake snorted at that,"Of course, they aren't," before continuing with a more sincere tone, "Hey, umm... sorry about earlier."

"For what?" Jaune asked as he stopped his spoon halfways towards his mouth.

"For putting my weapon against you."

"Eh, water under the bridge," he brushed it off nonchalantly. Blake, however, wasn't as quick to move past the whole ordeal.

"But-"

"And besides, it's not everyday I get a girl pressing her whole body against me, so it's not like I didn't get something out it," Jaune snickered cheekly, that damned smirk back on his lips.

"Ew, you are such a per-..." Blake stopped her scolding when she remembered the exchange they'd shared earlier, though she still wanted to know something about the subject. "Okay, how _did_ you know that? Even if it is a 'public secret', I doubt it's info any captured Fang would ever tell someone about." Her eyes narrowed at him.

The blonde gave a silent chuckle. "Okay, the answer is simple; we have moles inside the Fang."

"What!? But how!?" Blake was honestly shocked by this. She knew first hand how rigorously the White Fang searched for leaks when they suspected anything foul was going on. She couldn't imagine how something this big could have slipped by them.

"Did you forget? All our operatives in the Hound are Faunus. Well, except for me and Violet of course."

Blake's eyes widened at the blonde's revelation. "Why tell me? What if I report it back to the Fang?"

"Well, will you really throw your brothers and sisters to the dogs?" He asked.

"What do you mean?"

"You see, Blake, I think you're too nice to rat your comrades in the Fang. You're loyal to a fault."

"But you're doing it!"

"Yeah and we help them afterwards. Tell me what happens if Adam learns of your traitors?"

"He'd-"

"Kill them," Jaune's interrupted with a suddenly cold look in his previously cheerful eyes that sent shivers down Blake's spine. "I'm sure you know, Blake, of the bodycount Adam has amassed."

"Bodycount...?"

Sighing and putting his bowl to the side, Jaune pulled out his scroll and after tapping it a few times, slid it across the table to Blake.

"Play the video," was all he said.

Nervously, Blake picked up the scroll and pressed the play button on the display. Instantly, it showed footage of Adam himself ruthlessly killing humans who she noted were driving a shipment of SDC dust.

"There's more." Jaune voice only made her stomach turn and twist even more as she swiped across the screen of the scroll, revealing another video of Adam butchering people without any shred of mercy. And then another after that. And then another after that one. And after that one as well. And after that. And that.

For far longer than she would have ever liked, Blake only swiped and watched as video after video showed her mentor killing almost indiscriminately. She tried keeping track of how many he cut down, but she was quickly distracted by the growing sense of unease in her stomach. When she arrived at the last video on the scroll, her hands were shaking, and her breathing had turned shallow. She had wanted to stop long ago, but a part of her knew that she needed to see it all. Swallowing down her dread as best she could, she pressed play.

Silently, Blake watched Adam killing a defenseless human female that was hugging a group of children, both human and faunus, and after hesitating for a short moment, he took his sword to the children as well, his face and coat stained crimson by the end.

Still not saying a word regarding the atrocities she had just witnessed, Blake put the scroll down and hastily made her way over to the sink, emptying her stomach into it as the countless faces of the humans in the video continued to flash in her mind. She retched and heaved until she had nothing left to release, and even then, she still stayed leaning over the sink for a moment as she tried in vain to make sense of what she'd seen.

"In the last video, right after you turned it off, Adam left a note in blood by the bodies saying, 'I will make the world a better place'," Jaune revealed grimly.

With her stomach now empty, Blake cleaned the sink the best she could before slowly walking to the table.

"Those videos is are why you're here right now," Jaune said as she sat down.

"What do you mean?" Blake asked quietly, not meeting his gaze, her own eyes locked on a spot on the table.

"I want to talk to Adam."

* * *

Months had passed since Jaune had showed her what Adam had done, and Blake had already returned to the Vale branch of the White Fang. It was announced that the Atlas branch were to stay low after she had reported on the hunt Atlesian forces were doing. She'd allowed by Jaune to leak that Specialists have now taken notice of their activities in Atlas and therefore the group had decided to proceed with caution.

Right now, Blake was assisting Adam in their latest heist and had just finished taking down the Spider Droid. The pair heard slow steps coming from the train car where they fought the Atlesian Knights. Out came a blonde figure wearing a white formal military dress accentuated with blue cloth designs. Jaune Arc had shown himself to them

"Hey there, Adam." he waved at him

Adam held his weapon tight and growled. "Jaune."

"I'm happy that you still remember me." he said with a sad smile.

Adam stepped in front of Blake. "So, the dog of Ironwood finally decides to set his fangs on my throat?"

The blonde raised an eyebrow. "Oh, don't be so edgy. I didn't come here to kill anyone," he waved his hand with an uninterested sigh.

"Then what are you here for?" Adam asked. Blake noticed his hands slowly relaxing from his hilt.

"I just want to talk. Hopefully to make a request that you stop killing as well."

"It's too late for that, Jaune. You humans have done enough, and my kind will not let this injustice go on any further."

"And killing people is your answer to that?! You're going to make things worse for Faunus-kind everywhere, Adam. Peace-"

"I am no in search of peace. And killing humans is not enough." He cut him off. "I will make a new world. One was humans would serve us." Adam gave a twisted smile as he stared at Jaune's shocked face. "And let them all die trying to resist the new world."

Ironwood's protégé took a deep breath and regained his composure. He then subtly glanced at Blake who was still behind Adam.

"Adam. If you won't stop the needless killing." He paused. "Then I'll be forced to arrest you for you're the crimes you've committed." He painfully spat the words from his mouth, and with pleading eyes he asked her mentor, "As a friend I'm giving you this one chance, Adam. Please. It doesn't have end with force."

"Friend?" Adam muttered then with a sneer on his face he started laughing as if there a joke was uttered by the blonde. "The moment you wore the colors of Atlas, you've ceased to be anything to me." He then readied himself into his combat stance.

With a grimace, Jaune pulled his weapon behind his waist to reveal a longsword with a handle that resembled a revolver. The blonde held the weapon with two gloved hands with his right hand's middle finger and index finger inserted into two triggers that his weapon had. He pointed his weapon behind him and pulled a trigger somehow the force was strong enough that it sent him flying towards Adam.

Adam striked the incoming blonde and Jaune swung his blade at Adam. The blonde landed between Blake and her mentor.

Silver met crimson as the two blades were swung and clashed. With Adam counter-attacking every move Jaune made while the latter would parry. The two were at an impasse.

"Take him down!" Adam shouted at Blake after noticing she was positioned behind the Hound commander.

But Blake didn't do anything. Adam froze in confusion at his partner's betrayal that he failed to notice the way Jaune's weapon was pointed at his chest.

He pulled a trigger and Adam was sent flying towards the last train car. She then cut the line that connected the two. Both literally and figuratively. "I'm sorry." She watched as the figure of her mentor become smaller and smaller until he's out of sight from the horizon.

She turned around to see the blonde officer watching her with a concerned expression.

"Thank you for letting me talk to him." Jaune gave a small smile filled with gratitude.

"If you don't mind me asking, why did you want to talk to him?" Blake asked.

Jaune raised an eyebrow before giving a small chuckle. "Wasn't there a saying about cats and curiosity?"

She gave a tired sigh. "Curiosity killed the cat is how the saying goes." She then raised an eyebrow. "Because if it is, then I don't want to know the reason if it's going to be the death of me."

"No, its nothing serious." He rubbed the back of his neck.

Blake stared, waiting for his answer.

"Oh, wow, you really want to know huh?"

She nodded.

"Well, Adam and I are kind of, old friends." He scratched his cheek.

Blake stared in surprise as the blonde made an awkward smile. No words left her open mouth though her mind did produce some her mouth failed to utter any.

Jaune and Adam. Ironically it was fitting. Both sides trying to change how humans treat Faunus with their own different ways. With Adam wanting Faunus supremacy while the other wanted egalitarianism between Faunus and humans.

Both are extremes, but Blake had already decided to walk her own path, one where she makes her own choices and not swayed by others'.

"Well, enough about me." Jaune started speaking. "What're you going to do now? Go back to Menagerie?"

Blake shook her head. "I'm going to Beacon Academy. I'll see to it that I'd become a huntress. Being a Faunus Huntress can help change the way Remnant would view us."

Jaune gave a warm smile. "Okay. Then I'll write a recommendation letter to the headmaster."

"Recommendation Letter?" Blake tilted her head to the side.

"It'll make the process of acceptance easier on you, and they won't need to make a background check since it came from me they'd easily figure out you're from the Fang." He grinned. "You're not the first ex-Fang that wanted to be attend Huntsman academies."

"I would appreciate that."

"Well, good. Now help me get rid of the charges." Jaune said, stepping into the train.

Blake followed suit only to be met by a group who were wearing Atlesian armor, and she was caught off-guard upon seeing the Faunus qualities all the soldiers had.

"You won't need to, sir. We've dealt with the charges." A dog Faunus approached and gave a salute.

Jaune smiled. "Good job. Now let's go home. I'm sure Violet is tired of the paperworks."

"I think specialist Schnee won't approve of how you let a squad of Atlesian Knight-130s be decimated."

Jaune gave a repulsive frown as if a memory flashed before him that caused him to shiver. "I heard Vale is warm at this time of year."

"Grab the commander!" The dog Faunus said, and all the male soldiers started piling on him.

Blake watched with a surprised expression as they tried to restrain him. A female Faunus approached her before she could ask anything.

"The commander tends to run away when he's in trouble."

"I see…" Blake replied, trailing off as she watched the whole unit interact. These were comrades who formed bonds with one another under the leadership of Jaune.

While the men played rough, a few female soldiers removed their helm and started engaging Blake in a conversation. Some of them she briefly knew from their time in the White Fang while others were just curious as to who she is.

Maybe there's still hope for Faunus equality after all.

* * *

 **IMPORTANT NOTE: THE LAST PART WAS NOT BETA READ AND INSTEAD ADDED BY ME BECAUSE MY WORK WAS BAD. AND IN NO WAY WAS THE BETA READER AT FAULT BUT I DID NOT LIKE THE FLOW THAT I MADE HENCE THE REWRITE. It was basically a different ending but I opted to change it because it was bland and I wish for my readers to review the last segment because I compared my original work and Maxaro's beta read outcome. And I want details if it was good or bad. Or plain boring.**

 ***sigh***

 **Maxaro DID A GREAT JOB BETA READING AND TAKE A LOOK AT HIS WORKS HE HAS FINE QUALITY FIC S.**

 **We now return to my message to readers.**

 **Gooooood happy holidays and new upcoming year for you my dear readers!**

 **Fun fact: This fic has been in the works for months before it was posted because of my fuck up. My writing was so bland that the beta reader had a hard time for it. But nevertheless he was compensated properly but I still feel bad about my bad quality.**

 **I want you all to know that this fic will not be discontinued but just like my other fics, It may have a longer update time depending on my… umm… Mental State. After December ends, I'll be looking for a psychiatrist regarding my… 'lethargy' and hopefully it doesn't TURN into something worst.**

 **If you liked the fic please give it a follow, favorite, and REVIEW. Like I said I want to improve and your reviews would help me a lot in the long run.**

 **I take criticism as well as I could. I'd get sad and maybe mad at my self for the bad quality or mistakes but I will try to rebuild my self from it so by all means, destroy me, break me apart, then help me build my self from the fragments and ashes and let me be A PHOENIIIIXXX!**

 ***SQWAK!***

 **Love & Peace ya'll! Ciao~**


End file.
